From Sand to Silicon - the Making of a Chip

From Sand to Silicon: the Making of a Chip

Have you ever wondered how the microprocessor, the brain 'behind the magic' of your PC, is made? If so, this site is just for you. Below you'll find an animated video, simple-to-follow documentation and some very cool graphics that illuminate the fascinating process Intel employs in building the chips that power many of the world's computers. The content is intended to be shared for enjoyment and educational purposes so feel free to download and share.

View this graphic presentation offering a high-level demonstration of the process for manufacturing a central processing unit (CPU), which operates in every PC today. Here you can catch a glimpse of some of the amazingly sophisticated work going on daily inside Intel's cutting-edge silicon manufacturing fabs.

Video: The Making of a Chip – 22nm/3D Transistor Version

High Resolution Photography

This set of 34 images from the presentation above illustrates the process of manufacturing a silicon chip. View the slideshow or click on each individual thumbnail. Hi-res download links are visible for each image. You can also download the full set. (ZIP 67MB)

back to topMaking of a Chip: 32nm High-K Metal Gate Process Technology

View this graphic presentation offering a high-level demonstration of the process for manufacturing a central processing unit (CPU), which operates in every PC today. Here you can catch a glimpse of some of the amazingly sophisticated work going on daily inside Intel's cutting-edge silicon manufacturing fabs.

High Resolution Photography

This set of 39 images from the presentation above illustrates the process of manufacturing a silicon chip. View the slideshow or click on each individual thumbnail. Hi-res download links are visible for each image. You can also download the full set. (ZIP 27.2MB)

back to topMaking of a Chip: 45nm High-K Metal Gate Process Technology

View this graphic presentation offering a high-level demonstration of the process for manufacturing a central processing unit (CPU), which operates in every PC today. Here you can catch a glimpse of some of the amazingly sophisticated work going on daily inside Intel's cutting-edge silicon manufacturing fabs.

Video: From Sand to Silicon - the Making of a Chip

High Resolution Photography

This set of 38 images from the presentation above illustrates the process of manufacturing a silicon chip. View the slideshow or click on each individual thumbnail. Hi-res download links are visible for each image. You can also download the full set. (ZIP 41.4MB)